Cardinal Tetra (As seen at National Aquarium), Fat AAA Grade
$2.00
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20 reviews for Cardinal Tetra (As seen at National Aquarium), Fat AAA Grade
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Cardinal Nose tetras are very good indicator fish in an aquarium. Their colors tend to fade in colour and intensity as water conditions deteriorate, a sure sign that a water change is needed. Cardinal nose tetras favor pristine water conditions.
We are a supplier of Cardinal Tetras to the National Aquarium in Inner Harbor, Baltimore. Our Cardinals are some of the thickest and fattest you’ll ever see in the hobby.
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Every fish we sell bears our gold seal that represents the Discus.com promise to our customers. When you make a purchase with us, you are entrusting our team with shipping you a collector grade specimen of unparalleled quality, beauty, size, and heft based on our judgement accrued over 25 years of experience. We guarantee the fish you receive will match the exact fish represented in our product photos. We are the gold standard of discus. Note: our discus are always measured from tip of nose to end of tail. |
| Category | Rating |
|---|---|
| Care Level: | Moderate, see our Learning Center for comprehensive care. |
| Temperament: | Peaceful |
| Color Form: | Huge variety available |
| Lifespan: | 15-25 Years |
| Adult Size: | 8-12 inches |
| Diet: | Omnivorous |
| Family: | Cichlidae |
| Minimum Tank Size: | 50 gallons |
| Tank Set-Up: | Bare-bottom, or Intermediate |
| Compatibility: | Often compatible |
Natural Habitat for Discus
Discus are found in floodplain lakes and flooded forests of the lowland Amazon River basin and some of its tributaries, including the Rio Negro. These areas experience extreme changes in water level due to seasonal flooding. Discus tend to congregate near fallen trees, known as “galhadas”, along the shore. They prefer quiet water, and are rarely found in areas where there is strong current or wave action.
Discus Water Requirements
Discus prefer warm, soft, acidic water. pH should be between 6.0 and 7.0, with hardness between 1° and 4° dKH (18 to 70 ppm). Temperature should be kept between 82° and 89° F. Water conditions for both wild and hybrid discus are the same. While captive bred discus can be kept in dechlorinated tap water reverse osmosis or deionized water supplemented will ensure the the best conditions. Discus require pristine water quality, and depending on the filtration system being used, a weekly or bi-weekly water change of 10% to 25% is highly recommended. Don’t forget to treat tap water with conditioner before refilling your aquarium!
Housing Requirements for Discus
Discus grow to be quite large, and full sized discus will require an aquarium of 50 gallons or larger when they reach adult size. Tall aquariums are best, to accommodate their body shape. Current should be gentle, and décor if used at all should include large broadleaf plants and driftwood that is arranged vertically to simulate downed branches and trees. A few floating plants can also be added to provide shaded areas and cover. Substrate should be fine to medium grade and smooth surfaced, as discus like to forage along the bottom for food.
Discus Behavior/Compatibility
Discus are generally calm, peaceful fish, but as cichlids they can be aggressive toward one another, especially when attempting to pair off and spawn. Shy or submissive fish should be removed if they are unable to compete. Most serious hobbyists do not mix their discus with too many other species. However, suitable aquarium mates include cardinal tetras, neons, emperor and rummy nose tetras, as well as clown loaches and dwarf cichlids such as rams and Apistogramma species. All of these fish tolerate the high temperatures and low pH/hardness required by discus.
What do Discus Eat?
In nature discus eat a considerable amount of plant material and detritus, but also forage along the bottom looking for worms and small crustaceans. They are omnivores and will thrive on freeze dried black worms, beefheart, frozen blood worms, and a variety of pellet and flake food. Frozen and live foods may be fed as treats or to help induce spawning. For best results, rotate their diet daily and feed only what they can consume in 2 to 3 minutes, once or twice a day.
Discus Breeding Level – Difficult
Captive bred discus will pair up and spawn relatively easily, but young, inexperienced parents may eat their eggs the first few times, particularly if other fish are present. After hatching the young feed on heavy body mucus secreted by the parents for a few days until they begin to free-swim. Parents will transfer the young back and forth several times a day.
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Q: How are your stated fish measurements conducted? A: All measurements are made from tip of nose to end of tail. Photographs are representative of the strain or variety, and not the exact specimens that will be shipped. Q: How do I make a purchase? A: Every discus you see on our website is available for immediate purchase and ready to be shipped to you. Click the “Add to Cart” button on your desired products, adjust your quantities, and follow the checkout instructions. We honor all special requests. Please allow a 2-day minimum handling period for discus. Shipping Tiers for Live Tropical Fish:
Blackworms: Free USPS Postal Shipping Plants: $10 FedEx Priority Shipping, Minimum Order: $15 International Buyers Please Note: Import duties, taxes and charges are not included in the item price or shipping charges. These charges are the buyer’s responsibility. Please check with your country’s customs office to determine what these additional costs will be prior to purchasing. |
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The first two times you gave me the wanna-be stick! This picture is finished to put in the comments section for good reviews!
Wow even. Your fish are fantastic, they're not fully acclimated yet but they're already beautiful. You can actually see the difference in them in the bag. At first I would have thought why are you shipping twice as much as everyone else, but when I received the box and opened it. It was all worth it, professional and neat, and seeing the fish verified all that again. Except for the big fat one that arrived dead. All fish are fine now. I'm so glad I met you! I used to keep and breed a lot of discus, they are so fascinating!
Hi- I felt I should let you know of my experience with the angels, cardinals and lilies. The angels and cardinals arrived, very well packaged. I appreciate the extra included cardinals, black out bags, superb packaging and included Nitrofurazone. After following the acclimation instructions the cardinals have done extremely well- active, great colors and eating well the day after acclimation. It has not been so smooth for the angels- they have not done well after acclimation, not eating, reclusive. I began the Nitrofurazone on day 2, but it hasn't helped. Unfortunately, 7 have perished, which makes me very sad. I do hope to order fish again, based on my experience with the cardinals.
The lillies- superb!!!! Beautiful and very healthy!!!! I will definitely order these again soon. In the past, when I have ordered lillies elsewhere, I might get a bulb with one to two leaves. My purchase from you was very different- both were really spectacular, and impressive!! I just wanted to let you know of my thoughts. Best regards- Richard
Thank you so much! We appreciate your help & will be in touch for future additions to our home tank.
Cheers, Crystal
Yeah they were nice! The others are doing well and I get it sometimes they just don’t adjust from the stress of shipping. I am more bummed about losing all those cardinals and rummy nosed tetras to be honest.
Michael, they all sparked up in a few hours. I did make a mistake and let the water in the bags into the tank. Its new water settled for a week, then one week with about 8 small fish, 2 crayfish and a snail. I am running 2 filters (75 Gal rating for each) on each side of my 65 Gallon aquarium and they have the bio filters that spin in front as the water exists the filter. I have a bag to absorb hardness in one filter. The water yesterday (before the intro of new fish) tested perfect in all the 5 test areas. PH is 7.0. Water temp 76 degrees. From Michael: Your water temperature is way too cold. Check my FAQs page for correct params.
I decided to purchase from Discus.com after shopping around online, comparing prices, and reading reviews from a handful of different places. Ultimately, Discus.com was the cheapest (price per fish after shipping), and appeared to have a high quality product.
I ordered 40 cardinal tetras on Wednesday 4/12/23 around noon. We had cold temps and bad weather coming in the following week so I chose Friday 4/14/23 as my desired delivery date. It was a short turn around for an overnight order but Michael made it happen.
There were 49 fish shipped to me, two had died in shipping. I released 47 fish into my tank on Friday afternoon and all but 3 looked pretty good.
On Saturday, they accepted some small pellets, and picked at sunken ones on the ground as well. 3 of the fish still looked stressed from shipping. Saturday night, 5 fish passed away. Water parameters were 0 Ammonia, 0 Nitrite, 20 ppm Nitrate. Air pump was on.
On Sunday morning I still had 42 fish (2 more than I ordered), and I had some baby brine shrimp ready. All the fish ate well and really finished coloring up.
Today, Monday, four days later, all the fish appear to be doing well, eating well, and have colored up nicely.
I'm very happy with the size, color, and health of the fish I received. I'm also very thankful for the great prices and and customer service from Michael at Discus.com.
Michael has kept in touch with me after the sale as the fish have become acclimated to their new home. Thanks Michael and thanks Discus.com!
The fish arrived and all look great after a few hours in the aquarium.
Thank you for the 200x cardinal tetras.
Its scrub and water change day so no poking fun at it. Most the plants were just put in 2 days before y'alls fish
I ordered 100 of the cardinals love them in tank with small Discus
I received the package yesterday at 3:53 pm. Almost 4 hours later than their estimated 12pm delivery time. The fish bags were immediat...More
They arrived yesterday and thank you for asking and I will send you a picture. I’m a little concerned I lost one? But my niece, who has much better eyes than myself, thinks it’s possibly a leaf caught in the filter. But most are very deep blue; however, a couple’s bodies are somewhat translucent. After this many tetras, additional substrate and plants - I think my tank will only be able to hold two discus (and I will have to pray to get lucky on getting a male and female). My tank is a 46 gallon bow front with two hanging “Marineland Emperor 400 gallon” filters. At one time I had three mature discus in it and they were a little crowded. However, I did get fry several times, but the female always ate them once they were free swimming (heart breaking!). I am interested in two small discus (3 inches, thereabouts) and want some color and stripes, and a two small plecos - one with gold spots and one with white spots. And I am open to any and all suggestions. Thank you for checking on things and will send a picture directly. Gregg